Watch Out, Nokia -- You May Be Infringing a Dead Dutch Painter!*

The new Windows 8 interface that Nokia just debuted on their Lumia 920 is beautiful, no doubt, but it's not necessarily original. In fact, it almost looks as if Microsoft lifted the UI right from the canvas of a Mondrian painting. Just look at the Windows' similarity to paintings by the famous (and long dead) Dutch painter Pieter Cornelis Mondrian:

According to Wikipedia, Mondrian developed his grid-like abstract painting style in the 1930's. While they weren't patented, they were created prior (faaaar prior) to the Windows 8 phone. Prior art, people!

Given the absurdity of present-day patent law, might we see Mondrain's estate suing Windows?*

Steven Blum has written more than 2,000 blog posts as a founding member of AndroidPIT's English editorial team. A graduate of the University of Washington, Steven Blum also studied Journalism at George Washington University in Washington D.C. for two years. Since then, his writing has appeared in The Stranger, The Seattle P-I, Blackbook Magazine and Venture Villlage. He loves the HTC One and hopes the company behind it still exists in a few years.

Just got back from your video link john. Believe it or not, Atari still exists. I think it was bought by the same people who bought Microprose (Civilization, Sword of the Samurai etc.) and they rebranded themselves as Atari.

Why not? And in the same sense the Roddenberry estate and Paramount Pictures should be suing Apple. Star Trek introduced us to a tablet device long before Apple ever did. Watch an episode of The Next Generation. They frequently use a device called a PADD (Peronal Access Data Device). It is a thin recrangular touch screen device with rounded corners and icons approximately the same dimensions as most of today's 10" tablets..... Apples innovative ideas my asteroid.....